Ares
"You were right, Diana, they don't deserve our help. They only deserve destruction." ―Ares to Wonder Womansrc Ares is the fearsome God of War and son of Zeus. At some point, Zeus created the Amazons, specifically Wonder Woman, as a fail-safe against Ares's own power. After some time, Ares had slain his father after Zeus and the Amazons fought against him. He would later reappear during World War I after showing interest in a new deadly gas being developed. Ares desired to use the gas against humanity, a race which he had developed bitter jealousy for. in: Wonder Woman characters, Villains, Main villains, and 4 more Ares Edit Comments (14) Share Diana Prince and Bruce Wayne "You know, it's true what they say about little boys... born with no natural inclination to share." This article contains spoilers from the most recent DCEU film. You have been warned. Ares Real name Ares Species Olympian God Alias(es) Sir Patrick Morgan(disguise) God of War God of Truth Died 1918 Affiliation(s) Himself Relatives Zeus (father) Diana (paternal half-sister) Status Unknown Portrayed by David Thewlis Appearances "You were right, Diana, they don't deserve our help. They only deserve destruction." ―Ares to Wonder Womansrc Ares is the fearsome God of War and son of Zeus. At some point, Zeus created the Amazons, specifically Wonder Woman, as a fail-safe against Ares's own power. After some time, Ares had slain his father after Zeus and the Amazons fought against him. He would later reappear during World War I after showing interest in a new deadly gas being developed. Ares desired to use the gas against humanity, a race which he had developed bitter jealousy for. Contents Biography Early Life Ares was born millennia ago to Zeus, King of the Olympian gods, as one of the latter's many godly children. War of the Gods Ares viewed the human race that Zeus created with disdain, and began corrupting them with war, blood-thirst, and violence. Zeus responded by creating a new race - the Amazons, who were intended to protect humanity from Ares' influence, while spreading love and compassion. Ares, however, violently rebelled, starting the War of the Gods, which resulted in him killing off the other gods for disagreeing with his bloodthirst and extremism. Ultimately, when only Zeus was left, he faced Ares in combat and wounded him, temporarily driving Ares back. Before Ares could recover and slay Zeus, Zeus fathered Diana (as a contingency weapon that could one day save humanity by defeating Ares) by Hippolyta, and created the protected island paradise Themyscira for the Amazons to live, hidden from the god of war. After all this, an enraged Ares reengaged and slayed his father. Corrupting Humanity Now, as the sole surviving unopposed Olympian god, Ares again proceeded to corrupt humankind with war, determined to wipe the race out, but that ultimately proved ineffective. Hence, at some point, Ares came to Earth, disguising himself as an elderly and kindly human named of "Sir Patrick Morgan", and became an advocate member of the British War Council. Secretly, however, Ares would support the German General Ludendorff, slyly inducing him and Doctor Poison to create an extremely deadly gas, which Ares intended to use for wiping out humanity for good. Instigating World War I In 1918, Ares witnessed the arrival of Diana to London from Themyscira, but maintained his disguise, initially pretending not to know her identity. Personality Ares, as the God of War, is extremely violent, bloodthirsty, selfish, sinister, and egregiously malevolent, willing to wipe out humanity (by instigating the devastating World War I and then utilizing Doctor Poison's immensely deadly gas), and ruthlessly killing off all of the other Olympian Gods when they opposed his hatred of humanity, even remorselessly slaying his own father Zeus. Indeed, he seems to genuinely believe that without humanity existing on Earth, the planet would be a paradise. Despite his violent and bloodthirsty nature though, Ares is a deceptive genius who can expertly hide it under a persuasive façade of calmness, kindness, perceptiveness, as well as his persuasive rhetoric, with Ares also usually not desiring to fight individuals who could be useful to him otherwise, like Wonder Woman. Indeed, while posing as the human "Sir Patrick Morgan", Ares deceived not only Wonder Woman, but even the highly experienced spies Steve Trevor and Sameer into believing that he was a staunch Allied Powers supporter, with him notably funding Steve Trevor's team for their military expedition to find and defeat General Ludendorff, with Wonder Woman never suspecting "Sir Patrick" until Ares willingly reveals himself to her. Ares is also a phenomenal demagogue, with the usage of seemingly rational arguments making Ares' method even more effective. Hence, even after revealing himself and his motives to Wonder Woman, Ares claimed to be "the God of Truth, not War" (notably saying this while restrained by the Lasso of Truth), and was still quite persuasive in presenting his viewpoints (him not actually being her enemy, and humanity being inherently malevolent and destructive even without his influence), to the point that it gave even the determined Wonder Woman some pause before she could even respond. As such, Ares succeeded in riling up Wonder Woman to a ferocious display of violence, and (by insulting Steve Trevor's sacrifice) almost got her to murder Doctor Poison. Ares' greatest weakness is his occasional overconfidence and arrogance (much like it is for Enchantress, General Ludendorff, and Amanda Waller), with the God of War believing that his phenomenal divine power and ability to enhance himself from violence makes him practically unbeatable. This ultimately becomes his downfall, as Wonder Woman is able to use her non-violent emotions of love and compassion to overpower and defeat Ares, fulfilling her role as the "Godkiller." Powers and Abilities Olympian God Physiology: As an Olympian God, and a son of Zeus himself, Ares is a phenomenally powerful divine being, enough to surpass even the already tremendous might of Wonder Woman. Super Strength: Ares has a tremendous level of superhuman strength, notably superior to that of Wonder Woman, with him able to send her flying vast distances with his incredibly mighty blows. Invulnerability: Ares, as an Olympian god, cannot be killed by normal superficial means, given as how Zeus was only slain by another Olympian god, Ares himself. As such, Ares withstood numerous tremendously mighty blows from Wonder Woman, conflagrations, and the full force of massive explosions, all without any permanent damage. Healing Factor: It is stated that when Zeus grievously wounded and drove Ares to flee from battle in the War of the Gods, the God of War managed to heal from it in a very short time. War Manipulation: Ares, as the God of War, has the formidable power to manipulate war, strife, combat, bloodlust, rage, and other forms of conflict. This power also allows Ares to naturally be incredibly skilled in all forms of fighting, and weaponry. War Inducement: Ares can induce conflicts by influencing people or events - raising personal and fanatical armies, shown when he corrupted humanity with warfare shortly after the race's creation, when he instigating the extremely devastating War of the Gods on Olympus, as well as later the equally devastating World War I (more horrific than any war before it in human history), which spanned much of Earth and lead to the deaths of millions. Violence Empowerment: Ares channels violence, hatred, rage, bloodshed and death to render himself more and more powerful, hence every time Wonder Woman attempted to fight Ares with violence, the God of War maintained the upper hand (the violence, hatred, devastation, and rage of Wonder Woman only making Ares more powerful), only losing when Wonder Woman understood and utilized the power of love against him instead. Violence Telepathy: Ares can subtly influence the thoughts of individuals that are predisposed to violence, hatred, rage, and bloodshed, with him covertly invading their minds, as in this way, Ares taught both opposing sides of World War I how to create innovative formidable weapons, notably giving General Ludendorff and Doctor Poison the idea of using lethal chemical warfare against the Allied Powers. He seemed to have also influenced Doctor Poison to create the metahuman gas that Ludendorff used to gain temporary physical enhancements as a ploy to fool Wonder Woman into thinking that Ludendorff was Ares, and to break her faith in humanity further. Indeed, after Ares' supposed death at the hands of Wonder Woman, many Central and Allied Powers soldiers embraced and smiled, as if they had just woken up from an enthrallment, ending World War I for good. Electrokinesis: Ares, like his father Zeus, can generate and control electricity to an extreme degree, generating everything from precise small tendrils to tremendous torrents (which incinerated almost anything in Ares' path) from his hands, with Ares also able to conduct extreme amounts of electricity through touch, with that allowing him to instantly break free from Wonder Woman's otherwise unbreakable Lasso of Truth. He could also summon immense celestial bolts of lightning, and redirect them towards desired targets. Telekinesis: Ares can move, hurl and manipulate objects' movements to an immense degree with mere hand gestures, thus keeping the Lasso of Truth from entangling him while fighting Wonder Woman, as well as telekinetically projecting waves of debris and hurling entire tanks at her. Indeed, Ares' telekinesis exerts such tremendous force, that he was able to immobilize Wonder Woman by having thick metal sheets pin her torso to the ground, forcing her to helplessly watch as Steve Trevor died, as she struggled to break free from Ares' telekinetic clutches. Battle Armor Creation: Ares was able to telekinetically create a powerful battle armor and helmet by summoning battle-scene debris towards himself and using his hear-based abilities to shape them together, and reforming it into fearsome black armor and a 4-horned helmet, as well as many mighty swords he created during his battle with Wonder Woman. Thermokinesis: REB ARES 1 Ares, melting open his helmet. Ares can manipulate and conduct an immense amount of heat, notably doing so when Wonder Woman tried stabbing him with her Godkiller sword (with the blade melting and harmlessly breaking into pieces upon touching the war god), and when Ares used his superheated fingers to melt open the eye and mouth openings of his reforged battle helmet. Teleportation: Ares can instantly traverse immense distances at will, appearing before Wonder Woman moments after she slayed General Ludendorff, teleporting all the way from England to Belgium. He swiftly disappears again as soon as Wonder Woman slashes her sword at him, promptly reappearing some distance away. Invisibility: Ares can render himself imperceptible to humans as he covertly manipulates and corrupts them, notably doing so to General Ludendorff and Doctor Poison. Shape-Shifting: Patrick Morgan - 001 Ares, as "Sir Patrick Morgan." Ares can persuasively alter his true divine appearance whenever necessary, notably posing as the middle-aged and lame-legged human "Sir Patrick Morgan." Illusion Casting: Ares can conjure up extremely realistic and vibrant illusions, notably temporarily altering the environment around himself and Wonder Woman to look like a luscious forest ally (representing the "paradise" that Earth could be without humanity). Flight: Ares can fly at considerable speeds, capable of maneuvering with precision in any direction, as well as hovering in one place. Immortality: Ares, due to him being an Olympian God, has been alive for millennia, predating the time when Zeus created humanity and the Amazons. Arrogance: Ares' greatest weakness is his occasional overconfidence and arrogance (much like it is for Enchantress, General Ludendorff, and Amanda Waller), with the God of War believing that his phenomenal divine power and ability to enhance himself from violence makes him practically unbeatable. Beings of Equal Power: Ares, when fighting other Olympian Gods (such as his father Zeus) is more vulnerable, as they are powerful enough to injure and even kill Ares, as during the War of the Gods, Zeus was able to temporarily force Ares into retreat by wounding him, and Ares was ultimately able to kill Zeus. Wonder Woman: Ares can be killed by her, since Zeus had created and empowered his daughter Wonder Woman to be the "Godkiller", as a fail-safe to stop Ares and save humanity from his corrupting influence. Non-Violent Combat: Ares, when attacked by an opponent filled with violence, hatred, or rage, will surely win, as the presence of those emotions only allow Ares to become more powerful. However, a sufficiently physically and mentally powerful opponent can bypass this by attacking Ares without those violent emotions. This was seen when Wonder Woman finally found true love by remembering her last conversation with Steve Trevor, who bid her farewell and declared his love for her, prior to his sacrifice. This calmed Diana of her violence and instead filled her heart and emotions of compassion and love, even for Ares himself, and thus it allowed her to weaken and defeat the God of War. Relationships Family Zeus † - father Hestia † - aunt Athena † - paternal half-sister Apollo † - paternal half-brother Wonder Woman - paternal half-sister Allies General Ludendorff Doctor Poison Enemies Olympian Gods - victims Zeus † Hestia † Athena † Apollo † Steve Trevor's team Wonder Woman - Archenemy and killer Steve Trevor † - seeming ally turned enemy Etta Candy - seeming ally turned enemy Sameer † Chief † Charlie † Trivia DCEU Ares is somewhat different from his original Greek mythology counterpart - the original Ares had been a rather poor tactician, more focused on mindless bloodshed. He is also usually depicted as a joke, being beaten by heroic mortals, insulted by Zeus and caught with Aphrodite in a net, while his incarnation both in the DCEU as well as the original DC comics is far more serious, intelligent, and fearsome. DCEU Ares' life of rebelling against his father for creating humanity and then secretly corrupting them for millennia, is a lot similar to the role of biblical Satan